The Library · Insights
Deep dives across data, automation & AI
1253 in-depth articles — from Excel foundations to production machine learning. Filter by topic or difficulty to find exactly what you need.
SQLPractitioner
Writing SQL to Unpivot Wide Tables into Long Format Using UNION ALL and Static Value Columns
Wide tables are great for spreadsheets and terrible for SQL analysis. This lesson teaches you how to manually unpivot any wide table into long format using UNION ALL and static value columns — a portable, transparent technique that works in every SQL database and gives you complete control over the output shape.
26 min read
Power AppsFoundation
Styling Canvas App Controls with Color, Font, and Border Properties: A Beginner's Guide to Visual Formatting
Learn how to apply color, font, and border styling to Power Apps canvas controls — including dynamic styles that respond to data and user actions. This hands-on lesson takes you from plain default controls to polished, professional-looking business apps.
17 min read
Power BIPractitioner
Implementing Power BI Multi-Geo Capacity Configuration to Meet Data Residency and Sovereignty Requirements Across Enterprise Regional Workspaces
Enterprise data residency requirements demand more than a policy document — they require verifiable technical controls. This lesson teaches you how to configure Power BI Multi-Geo capacities, assign workspaces to regional geo zones, and produce audit-ready evidence that your data stays where regulation says it must.
25 min read
Power BIExpert
DAX Allocation Patterns: Distributing Shared Costs, Revenue, and Budgets Across Dimensions Using Weighted Ratios and Virtual Relationship Techniques
Allocating shared costs and budgets across dimensions is one of the most practically demanding challenges in Power BI. This expert-level lesson teaches you production-grade DAX patterns for weighted-ratio allocation, budget disaggregation, cascading hierarchies, and virtual relationships using TREATAS — with full validation techniques and performance guidance.
26 min read
Power BIPractitioner
Designing a Drill-Through Page in Power BI Desktop: Building Context-Aware Detail Views from Summary Visuals
Drill-through is one of Power BI's most powerful UX patterns — but it only works if you configure it correctly and design the destination page with intention. This lesson teaches you how to build context-aware detail pages that give every type of user exactly the depth they need, from field setup to DAX measures that confirm filter context.
26 min read
Power QueryPractitioner
Implementing Custom Table Sampling and Statistical Estimation Pipelines in Power Query M: Stratified, Systematic, and Random Row Selection for Large Dataset Profiling
Stop grabbing arbitrary row slices and hoping they're representative. This lesson teaches you to implement stratified, systematic, and simple random sampling in pure M code, then wire them into a column profiling pipeline that produces null rates, cardinality, and skewness estimates from large datasets you can't fully load.
24 min read
Power QueryPractitioner
Unpivoting Cross-Tab and Matrix-Formatted Excel Reports in Power Query: Reshaping Wide Data into Analysis-Ready Tables
Cross-tab reports look great in Excel but break every analysis tool that touches them. Learn how to use Power Query's unpivot operations to reshape wide, matrix-formatted data into tidy, analysis-ready tables — including how to handle multi-row headers, merged cell hierarchies, and dynamic column counts.
23 min read
Microsoft ExcelPractitioner
Building a VBA-Powered Batch File Rename and Folder Inventory Engine: Automate Directory Traversal, File Metadata Extraction, and Structured Reporting Directly from Excel
Stop clicking through Windows Explorer to manage files. This hands-on lesson walks you through building a complete VBA engine that recursively scans directory trees, extracts rich file metadata, generates structured inventory reports, and executes batch renames from an Excel mapping table — with full audit logging and rollback capability.
23 min read
Microsoft ExcelPractitioner
Mastering Excel's IF, AND, OR Logic Combinations: Build Multi-Condition Formulas for Real-World Business Decisions
Single-condition IF formulas only get you so far. Learn how to combine IF with AND, OR, and NOT to build multi-condition decision logic that mirrors real business rules — from compliance flags to tiered eligibility classifiers. Practical formulas, real datasets, and a hands-on project included.
20 min read
Power AutomateFoundation
Automating a Microsoft Forms Approval Request with Power Automate: Capturing Responses, Routing to an Approver, and Sending Outcome Notifications
Learn how to build a complete end-to-end approval workflow that captures Microsoft Forms submissions, routes them to a manager for a decision, and automatically emails the requester the outcome. No code required — just a practical, reusable pattern you can adapt for time-off requests, expense approvals, IT access, and more.
17 min read
Power AutomateExpert
Implementing Power Automate Cross-Environment Flow Analytics with Power Platform Admin APIs: Extracting Run Telemetry, Aggregating Failure Rates, and Surfacing SLA Breaches
Learn how to build a production-grade cross-environment analytics system using the Power Platform Admin APIs to extract flow run telemetry, compute sliding-window failure rates, and detect SLA breaches across Dev, Test, and Production — before your customers do. This expert-level lesson covers service principal auth, paginated run history queries, P95 duration calculations, and breach alert routing with full code examples.
28 min read
Microsoft FabricPractitioner
Implementing Fabric Warehouse Stored Procedures and Cross-Database Views: Encapsulating Business Logic and Joining Lakehouse SQL Endpoint Tables with Warehouse Tables Using T-SQL
Learn how to build stored procedures and cross-database views in Microsoft Fabric that join Lakehouse Delta tables with Warehouse dimension tables — without copying data. This hands-on lesson covers parameterized business logic, federated T-SQL queries, materialization patterns, and pipeline integration for a production-ready analytics layer.
24 min read